The UK's marketplace lending sector is one of the world's oldest and largest, but it may be reaching a tipping point whereby growth starts to slow and market dynamics start to change.

Chirag Shah, founder and CEO of marketplace lender Nucleus Commercial Finance, said in an interview with Business Insider that the sector will see a major shakedown in 2017, with smaller players eliminated and only several leading lenders remaining.

Here's why we agree with Shah's claim:

An impending FCA crackdown on marketplace lenders. Last week, the UK regulator published the results of a review of the marketplace lending industry and raised several concerns, including customer misinformation and unduly risky strategies. As a result, it has proposed new regulations for the sector and plans to crack down on transgressors. While larger lenders such as RateSetter and Zopa have the resources to bolster their compliance teams and weather the crackdown, smaller rivals found to be uncompliant will likely fail to survive.

The market is oversaturated. We are already seeing signs that demand for loans isn't meeting capital supply in the sector. LandBay, a lender specializing in property, has seen originations plunge recently, and Zopa, the world's oldest marketplace lender, recently had to suspend new investment because of weak demand for loans. And while Zopa has now lifted the suspension, indicating that larger players are equipped to navigate market lulls, smaller players are less likely to be able to recover.

Smaller platforms are already struggling to make their business models work. UK lending platforms Funding Knight and Legion Trade Finance both ran out of capital earlier this year. Funding Knight was forced to sell itself to an investment firm, and Legion Trade Finance ceased operations. We believe this is the start of a trend we will see a lot more of in 2017, with smaller players either disappearing completely or being acquired by larger firms.

Whether market consolidation proves beneficial to consumers will depend on the remaining lenders' ability to differentiate.There is a risk that, with time, the lenders that survive will become increasingly similar to incumbent banks, as the traditional banking model has been proven to be sustainable and profitable.

Zopa, for instance, has already applied for a full banking license. But for the marketplace lending industry to continue to benefit consumers, the remaining players will have to find ways to consistently offer services not provided by legacy banks, at a lower cost, while remaining compliant.

We’ve entered the most profound era of change for financial services companies since the 1970s brought us index mutual funds, discount brokers and ATMs.

No firm is immune from the coming disruption and every company must have a strategy to harness the powerful advantages of the new fintech revolution.

The battle already underway will create surprising winners and stunned losers among some of the most powerful names in the financial world: The most contentious conflicts (and partnerships) will be between startups that are completely reengineering decades-old practices, traditional power players who are furiously trying to adapt with their own innovations, and total disruption of established technology & processes:

Traditional Retail Banks vs. Online-Only Banks: Traditional retail banks provide a valuable service, but online-only banks can offer many of the same services with higher rates and lower fees

Traditional Lenders vs. Peer-to-Peer Marketplaces: P2P lending marketplaces are growing much faster than traditional lenders—only time will tell if the banks strategy of creating their own small loan networks will be successful

Traditional Asset Managers vs. Robo Advisors: Robo advisors like Betterment offer lower fees, lower minimums and solid returns to investors, but the much larger traditional asset managers are creating their own robo-products while providing the kind of handholding that high net worth clients are willing to pay handsomely for.

As you can see, this very fluid environment is creating winners and losers before your eyes…and it’s also creating the potential for new cost savings or growth opportunities for both you and your company.

After months of researching and reporting this important trend, Sarah Kocianski, senior research analyst for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has put together an essential report on the fintech ecosystem that explains the new landscape, identifies the ripest areas for disruption, and highlights the some of the most exciting new companies. These new players have the potential to become the next Visa, Paypal or Charles Schwab because they have the potential to transform important areas of the financial services industry like:

Retail banking

Lending and Financing

Payments and Transfers

Wealth and Asset Management

Markets and Exchanges

Insurance

Blockchain Transactions

If you work in any of these sectors, it’s important for you to understand how the fintech revolution will change your business and possibly even your career. And if you’re employed in any part of the digital economy, you’ll want to know how you can exploit these new technologies to make your employer more efficient, flexible and profitable.

Among the big picture insights you'll get from The Fintech Ecosystem Report: Measuring the effects of technology on the entire financial services industry:

Fintech investment continues to grow. After landing at $19 billion in total in 2015, global fintech funding had already reached $15 billion by mid-August 2016.

The areas of fintech attracting media and investor attention are changing. Insurtech, robo advisors, and digital-only banks are only a few of the segments making waves. B2B fintechs are also playing an increasingly prominent role in the ecosystem.

It's not all good news for fintechs.Major hurdles, including customer acquisition and profitability, remain. As a result, many are becoming more willing to enter partnerships and adjust their business models.

Incumbents are enacting strategies to ensure they remain relevant.Many financial firms have woken up to the threat posed by fintechs and are implementing innovation strategies to stave off disruption. The majority of these strategies involve some interaction with fintech firms.

The relationship between incumbents and fintechs continues to evolve. Fintechs are no longer viewed exclusively as a threat, nor can they be ignored. They are increasingly viewed as partners, but that narrative alone is too simple — in reality, a more nuanced connection is taking hold.

This exclusive report also:

Assesses the state of the fintech industry.

Gives details on the drivers of its growth.

Explains which areas of fintech are gaining traction.

Outlines the range of current and potential models for fintech and incumbent interaction.

The Fintech Ecosystem Report: Measuring the effects of technology on the entire financial services industry is how you get the full story on the fintech revolution.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide to the fintech revolution, choose one of these options:

Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP

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The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the fast-moving world of financial technology.